第35部分(第1/7 页)

en　relying　on　it。　Probably　not　Thresh　though。　Iˇve　got　a　feeling　he　must　share　some　of　Rueˇs　knowledge　on　how　to　feed　yourself　from　the　earth。　Are　they　fighting　each　other？　Looking　for　us？　Maybe　one　of　them　has　located　us　and　is　just　waiting　for　the　right　moment　to　attack。　The　idea　sends　me　back　to　the　cave。

Peetaˇs　stretched　out　on　top　of　the　sleeping　bag　in　the　shade　of　the　rocks。　Although　he　brightens　a　bit　when　I　e　in；　itˇs　clear　he　feels　miserable。　I　put　cool　cloths　on　his　head；　but　they　warm　up　almost　as　soon　as　they　touch　his　skin。

¨Do　you　want　anything？〃　I　ask。

¨No；〃　he　says。　¨Thank　you。　Wait；　yes。　Tell　me　a　story。〃

¨A　story？　What　about？〃　I　say。　Iˇm　not　much　for　storytelling。　Itˇs　kind　of　like　singing。　But　once　in　a　while；　Prim　wheedles　one　out　of　me。

¨Something　happy。　Tell　me　about　the　happiest　day　you　can　remember；〃　says　Peeta。

Something　between　a　sigh　and　a　huff　of　exasperation　leaves　my　mouth。　A　happy　story？　This　ore　effort　than　the　soup。　I　rack　my　brains　for　good　memories。　Most　of　them　involve　Gale　and　me　out　hunting　and　somehow　I　donˇt　think　these　will　play　well　with　either　Peeta　or　the　audience。　That　leaves　Prim。

¨Did　I　ever　tell　you　about　how　I　got　Primˇs　goat？〃　I　ask。　Peeta　shakes　his　head；　and　looks　at　me　expectantly。　So　I　begin。　But　carefully。　Because　my　words　are　going　out　all　over　Panem。　And　while　people　have　no　doubt　put　two　and　two　together　that　I　hunt　illegally；　I　donˇt　want　to　hurt　Gale　or　Greasy　Sae　or　the　butcher　or　even　the　Peacekeepers　back　home　who　are　my　customers　by　publicly　announcing　theyˇd　breaking　the　law；　too。

Hereˇs　the　real　story　of　how　I　got　the　money　for　Primˇs　goat；　Lady。　It　was　a　Friday　evening；　the　day　before　Primˇs　tenth　birthday　in　late　May。　As　soon　as　school　ended；